Lesson Of The Luddites

Another lesson from history, this time from U.K,pre U.S.civil war, informs about the battle between man and machines.Machine made prefab vests,sweaters,socks etc.using lambskin reduced time and income for the muscular types who had done well in the trade.They literally went to war and briefly prevailed until technological progress advanced to where they had to ask for part of what was purely machine profit.(Machines in which they had no ownership)guns were drawn, police and militia were mobilized, lives were lost and the Luddites lost.A growing percentage of the jobs already lost and being lost today are being lost to machines.Artificial intelligence and robotics are replacing repetitive task workers of ever increasingly complex definition.

As the believers in the Trumpeter’s promises begin to realize that the 1950’s are not coming back and that three and four relatively low paying,and disappearing jobs are required to make up for the 50’s prior security,what form will their protest then take? The Luddites briefly turned on one another and then went after the establishment.(Manufacturers).

daedal2207: “As the believers in the Trumpeter’s promises begin to realize that the 1950’s are not coming back and that three and four relatively low paying,and disappearing jobs are required to make up for the 50’s prior security, what form will their protest then take? The Luddites briefly turned on one another and then went after the establishment.”

What is most disturbing to and for our country … ignorance of facts, denial of eventual conditions or the deliberate con? The ultimate cruelty will be to punish those who, due to frustration, will be vilified for their justified anger. It’s not easy to face the fork on the road … one path being a dead end, the other the reality of man’s desire for better and more efficient ways. Technology and automation. If we’ve been granting visas to a work force (now located in banned countries) that fills our shortage of scientists and engineer (a hypocritical solution that will frustrate our own forward-thinking companies), we obviously and miserably have failed our population in educating it for the future. We do not help one another by pandering and perpetuating a lie. Telling miners and “repetitive task workers” that their jobs are coming back is the ultimate betrayal of trust. But, the rising cost of living for the average family will be the catalyst. Watch out.

P. S. Those of us who live in colder climates (not being able to grow our own) will have to pay more for avocados!

There are more lessons here. Beliefs motivate us. All of us want to feel good about ourselves. We want to believe that what we do advances that which is good. So for the sake of ACTUALLY doing that which improves the human condition it is critical that our beliefs be as well rooted in the soil of objective truths as is possible (If feeling good (subjective) is prioritized over actions that do good (objective) it is possible to manipulate evidence to favor feelings at the expense of reality.) It is interesting that a conservative thinker would agree with almost all of the concerns presented by SB (whose past writings present strong progressive leanings). What disturbs her are “ignorance of facts, denial of eventual conditions or the deliberate con”, those with “justified anger” will be cruelly punished, … there is a “fork on the road … one being a dead end, the other the reality of man’s desire for better and more efficient ways”. Those who advocate for conservative policies argue with equal sincerity that if leftism continues to make inroads into our once relatively free and efficient market system these and other sad diminishments will be the result.
Some other points:
The seven countries that were “temporarily” banned for immigration are not likely to be a significant source for “filling our shortage of scientists and engineers”.
SB is correct in stating that “We do not help one another by pandering and perpetuating a lie.” But telling SOME miners and repetitive task workers that their jobs are “coming back” may be a truth, not a lie. It is possible to give new focus to SOME U.S. industries that have been recently depressed. Steel production and mining are examples. But big picture economics clarify the fact that there is something that can be called constructive destruction. New ways often make old ways obsolete. The sooner the new ways are learned (constructed) and the old forgotten (destroyed) the more efficient is the use of labor and resources. We all like clean air (conservatives too), thus there will be continuing efforts by all to wean ourselves away from that which pollutes. Many in our population will need to learn how to productively earn their way among the growing options of renewable forms of energy.
Made in America – aside from the probability that more Americans will have jobs – to the degree that this translates to more expensive labor the prices paid for product will trend higher. To the degree that American labor might be more efficient; the trend will be toward lower prices.